The 10 Most Fascinating Digital Marketing Stats of the Week

Like 108 marijuana marketers launch every week

The 10 most intriguing numbers from digital marketing over the last week include new data on the explosion of legal marijuana marketing as well as stats that show how online video continues to grow.

1. In today's Adweek magazine, we report how several notable publishers told us that Facebook was pushing them to make videos exclusively for the social site. Here's an example of why it's probably not a hard sell: Uproxx, a site that focuses on millennial guys, recently debuted an original Web series called Luminaries. According to The Wall Street Journal, Uproxx ran the second episode of Luminaries as a Facebook-only installment last Wednesday. The episode, which features an 18-year-old man who develops a pistol that can only be used by its owners, garnered 4 million views in the first 24 hours on the site and hit 9 million views before the end of of Friday.

2. The marijuana industry serves 50 million American consumers, per data from InvestInCannibas. Only 8 percent of that market is legalized, according to the company's research, but InvestInCannibas claimed there have been 108 startups launching weekly in the weed marketing space in recent months, with many focusing on leveraging tech to reach marijuana smokers.

3. Digital ad viewability continues to be a hot topic. The latest evidence can be seen in the startup Clearstream, which stated it expects to its revenue to increase from $12 million in 2014 to $33 million this year while offering viewability data and other services to clients like BP, Nikon, McDonalds, MGM Studios, Porsche, Subaru and Allstate.

4. The average adult will spend 5.5 hours watching online video every day this year, according to eMarketer, as consumers move away from television in favor of digital devices.

5. However, New York-based eMarketer reported that brands are still pouring money into TV advertising. In 2015, 40 percent of media spending will go to TV, totaling $70.6 billion. Meanwhile, U.S. advertisers will put 4.4 percent of all spending, or $7.8 billion, into digital video ads. It appears to be an uneven allocation of funds—eMarketer said television accounts for 36 percent of media consumption compared with 11 percent for digital.

6. Some marketers are bucking that trend, however. Thanks to a 20 percent revenue jump last year, candy seller Trolli, for instance, said it plans to increase its digital marketing budget to 40 percent of its total spending in 2015.

7. L2 examined 82 brands across six sectors and found that 62 percent of major retailers achieved stock market gains by publicizing improved website functionality. So, Wall Street seems to keep its ear pretty close to the ground when it comes to digital innovations.

8. High-end fashion retailers are starting to hone their digital chops but still have a way to go. For example, Digiday reported that Michael Kors recently said that its e-commerce channel accounts for only 7 percent of its total sales.

9. Identity management tech company Gigya's data revealed that Facebook accounted for 64 percent of all social log-ins on the Internet during the first quarter of 2015.

10. A 12-second video of a Silverback gorilla cracking the window separating the ape from onlookers at Henry Doorly Zoo & Aquarium in Omaha, Neb., has gotten nearly 14 million views in the four days it's been on YouTube. Marketers, however, said the buzz surrounding the video—which involves children and is fairly frightening—was bad for the zoo's brand.